To the Editor:

I am a college student and I remember being in high school and losing a fellow classmate to suicide. She was going through a mental health crisis and ended up choosing to kill themselves, even though their family and community tried to provide them with support. After her suicide, the result was evident at school, with many of her friends traumatized and deeply saddened. Some of us were scared that she wouldn’t be the only one. On April 21, an extreme group of Michigan lawmakers proposed legislation to create a right for people to kill themselves with the help of a doctor. This not only breaks the commitment of society to help those who are suffering, but also declares a right to suicide. This bill is an attack on all those who are suffering as well as those who have lost loved ones to suicide.

Across the country and the world we are seeing a number of countries legalizing assisted suicide, though there has been a recent pushback with Scotland, England, and Slovenia recently rejecting legalization. In Canada, the situation is catastrophic when it comes to human rights. By next year, people will be able to have themselves euthanized for mental illness. Disabled individuals, the elderly and frail, as well as the poor are currently being pressured into committing suicide this way. With doctor assisted suicide or euthanasia being cheaper than healthcare, those who are not able to afford care end up being pressured into death. In the United States we see this already happening, with insurance companies in the state of California telling people that they refuse to cover their medical expenses but will cover their suicide. If we legalize this in Michigan, then we have every reason to believe the same will happen.

According to research that has been done in states that have legalized assisted suicide, the suicide rate outside of assisted suicide goes up when it’s been legalized. This is something called suicide contagion, which is when as the societal prohibition and taboo around suicide is lifted, more people who otherwise wouldn’t have killed themselves end up doing it. As has been stated time and time again, we cannot tell teenagers to not kill themselves while at the same time declaring it a right for the elderly and the disabled.

This current attempt to legalize and declare moral the act of doctor assisted suicide is a direct attack on the most vulnerable among us as well as a slap in the face to those who have lost loved ones to suicide. We must rather fund and expand access to real healthcare, especially pain relieving palliative care. We must also redouble our efforts to fight suicide and promote mental health. Ultimately, this bill must be withdrawn as soon as possible. We can never compromise on suicide.

Sébastien Ostertag

Sébastien Ostertag is a Salem graduate and former Perspective staff member. He is a member of Democrats for Life of America, a nonprofit organization that fights against abortion and euthanasia.